Blackfish Universal deal announced

We are pleased to reveal today that we have closed a multi-territory sales deal with NBCUniversal for our BAFTA nominated documentary Blackfish by Gabriela Cowperthwaite. The territories include Asia, Italy, Portugal, Central and Eastern Europe, Africa, Scandinavia, Latin America and was brokered by Ana Vicente, Head of Theatrical for Dogwoof.

Blackfish was acquired by Dogwoof in 2013 following its world premiere at Sundance. Other territories sold by Dogwoof include German and French speaking Europe, Spain, The Netherlands, and a multi-territory deal with Netflix.

“This deal is the culmination of an amazing year for Blackfish. It so rewarding to see how passionate Universal feels about Blackfish, which is what we at Dogwoof look for in the partners for the films we represent” Ana Vicente, Dogwoof

Following US and UK release, Blackfish quickly became one of the most talked about films of 2013, in part due to the high-profile support it received from celebrities such as Stephen Fry, Aaron Paul, Ellen Page, Kevin Spacey, and Russell Brand;  activism from anti animal cruelty charities; the PR response from SeaWorld; and its broadcast on CNN. Blackfish topped the iTunes documentary slot in both the US and UK for weeks.

Blackfish tells the story of Tilikum, a performing killer whale that killed several people while in captivity. Using original footage and interviews with ex-trainers director Gabriela Cowperthwaite skilfully creates a story so thrilling that it could be mistaken for a horror movie if it was not all real.

For more information on the film, visit blackfishmovie.com, and follow the film on Facebook and Twitter